We hope that you will find this an informal yet informative spot to get your thoughts out on the many topics and issues facing amateur sports.

There are several sport categories that are moderated by our Sport Matter Experts™.

SMEs provide unbiased but experienced commentary on a wide variety of topics.

Welcome to the kBlog™ … enjoy!

Hello Readers

My name is Chris Lori, I spent fourteen years on Canada’s Olympic bobsled team. For more info on me, there should be a bio on this page.

It is my pleasure to be a part of the “Know the Game” team, especially as we lead into the Olympic games here in Vancouver/Whistler, my current residence, and where I will be the TV analyst for men’s bobsledding for CTV.

What Makes a Bobsledder?

This is the most commonly asked question. How did someone from Windsor, Ontario get into bobsledding?

I will start with the boring stuff, but we have to lay the foundation for understanding the qualities required to succeed in bobsledding. Let’s start with the physical attributes of a typical bobsleigh athlete on the world cup circuit. Although there are events for both, men and women, I will commonly refer to the athlete as male, since I am one, and I apologize in advance to the “gender sensitive” reader.

A typical male athlete on world cup has an optimal combination of speed, explosiveness, power and agility. However, even the ideal combination of these physical qualities can be awash if one does not have the psychological prowess to confront and overcome the danger and physical demands of the sport. We have seen many cases of this over the years. To put in terms of numbers, the average world cup bobsledder the speed to run the 100m sprint in less than 11.00s and “power clean” about 140 Kg’s (300 lbs). A “power clean” is a strength lift where the athlete will lift a barbell loaded with weights from the floor directly to their shoulders in one single movement. It is an ultimate test of overall strength. Why? Because the sled weighs approximately 180 KG (400lbs) for 2-man and 220 Kg (500lbs) for a 4-man.. The average weight of a male bobsledder is in the range of 90 – 105 Kg’s (200-230lbs) of functional mass largely in the hips and legs, where the power is required. That’s just the crewmen, the guys that push behind the driver. For females, I’m not totally sure, because they are not as open to disclose their weight, but could be learned if I got off my butt and did some research. Now, it doesn’t stop there, we will speak more of the skill required by a crewman as we proceed through this blog. The driver, however, requires an additional set of skills that are acquired over time and only the toughest and most skilled will ever make it to the top.

Understanding the basic physical skills required to succeed in the sport, you can see how a team from Jamaica, Australia and New Zealand can produce a team. You take the skilled athlete with the essential tools and make them into a bobsledder. All you need now is some expensive equipment and a track. Calgary is home track to many such nations. When I started, we did not yet have the Calgary track as we were preparing for my first Olympic games, which was in Calgary. At the start of my career, we underwent excruciating physical tests for power and speed and, since we did not have a home track, we took our skills to the tracks of Europe to gain our “on ice” experience. Specifically, I started in Oberhof, East Germany, behind the iron curtain and one of the most challenging tracks in the world.

Bobsledders are tough, their bodies are like race cars! They are continually placing very high demand on their bodies on a rigorous schedule. In-season demands of a bobsledder requires sessions split up into speed and power training, weight training, pushing the sled (on a simulated track), training sessions on the bob track, walking and studying the track, as well as moving and working on the 500lb sled, video review and maybe some physical therapy resulting from a muscle strain, a crash, or your teammates sharp spikes digging into your flesh from an error while loading into the sled, which can leave one committed to having the spikes digging into your quadriceps in corners pulling five G’s.

See you next time..

Chris Lori

Hello KBloggers

We are embarking on an exciting time at KnowTheGame, Inc. We have recently added Daniele DeFranceschi (Cycling)  Norm McIntyre (Soccer) and are about to add another CPGA Golf SME shortly. Chris Lori (Bobsled) recently posted his first blog as did CPGA David Wettlaufer (golf). We are hoping to add Alpine Skiing to our content soon

Discussions with Corporate Partners are progressing and with their assistance we will be able to bring sport e-learning to athletes and volunteer certification to coaches, trainers and officials in a variety of sports. Regionally, KTG is co-hosting a Hockey Coaching Workshop to be held August 29th at St Clair College in Windsor  This workshop is sanctioned by Ontario Minor Hockey Association and coaches that attend will receive certification. On a National level we are working with More Sport and YELLSports. These Vancouver based oganizations help core city youth by offering sport leadership programs in Vancouver Schools. On an International level, a very interesting relationship is developing with a London England user group in preparation for the 2012 Olympic games.

I invite you to visit your favorite sport and begin communicating with the SME. He/She will be able to direct questions, provide tips for improvement and bring your game up a notch if you are an avid sport enthusiast.

Visit us regularily and tell your family and friends about us. Our goal is to bring more Canadians to sport and keep them in sport for longer periods of time.

best,

Mark